Taiwan’s most maligned tourist destination must abandon its old bag of tricks if it plans to survive.
The News Lens
Date: 2019/03/19
By: Beach Talk
Credit: CNA
Most of Taiwan’s tourism companies have business models that only focus on maximizing short-term benefits. This causes major environmental damage and adversely affects the quality of each visitor’s experience. In the long-term, it creates a vicious cycle, eventually forcing the local industry to just put up more beach parasols and increase the price of luwei (braised meat and vegetables).
No matter what happens, Kenting as a tourist attraction will still be the butt of the industry’s jokes.
To emphasize this point, here is an example that almost all visitors will have come across: jet-skis. These are an easy way of making money when deployed in combination with banana boats. The work is relaxed, and the cost of training is low. Most importantly, tourists love them. Besides this, jet-skis can also be used to get around, transport goods, and save lives. They are a godsend for local villagers, who therefore treasure them dearly.
However, nothing in the world is everlasting. In the long-term, the lack of regulations and control on the size of jet-skis have seen problems arise, including noise and oil pollution and damage to the land and ecology. These all add up and affect the economic performance of this scenic spot. [FULL STORY]
